INTERNATIONAL REMUNERATION
Expatriate policies under the spotlight
If you are currently evaluating your international assignment policy or if you need to benchmark specific policy elements, take a look at a new survey by William M Mercer. It provides a wealth of information on the practices of leading North American and European firms.
The 200-company survey found that multinational companies are increasingly refining their packages for expatriate employees to stay competitive. As well as mobility premiums, companies are focusing on factors such as hardship grants, housing policies and support for spouses.
Expatriate premiums and incentives
As many as 80% of respondents believe that mobility premiums and hardship grants are essential to the success of the assignment. Such allowances can range from 30% to 40% of gross base salary for certain destinations deemed difficult, such as Algeria, Democratic Republic of the Congo and China.
Key findings of Mercer’ s survey of expatriate benefit packages
|
| Per cent of respondents |
| International assignment policy |
|
| 69% |
| 30% |
| 1% |
| Approach to expatriate compensation |
|
| 67% |
| 14% |
| 42% |
| 58% |
| Determination of mobility premiums |
|
| 68% |
| 14% |
| 18% |
| Frequency of mobility payments |
|
| 68% |
| 18% |
| 14% |
Want to know more?
Title: International assignments: a survey of premiums incentives and company practices, by William M Mercer.
Sample size: The research is based on a survey of over 200 major multinational firms worldwide employing a total of about 50,000 expatriates.
Availability: Contact client services, Mercer Global Information Services, Geneva, tel: + 41 22 869 3000.
William M Mercer is a human resource and employee benefits consultancy, with some 13,000 employees in more than 130 cities in 37 countries. For more information visit . . . www.wmmercer.com